Chapter 2383 Ambition
Zhou Lizhong privately encouraged Zhou Wulang, "Uncle Wu, you are very familiar with the procurement work in the capital. Why don't you try to take over the procurement for the imperial farm? If you do a good job, you might even be able to provide some vegetables, meat, and eggs to the palace."
Zhou Wulang scratched his head. "Actually, I've always had a question. Doesn't the emperor have a large estate of his own? Doesn't he raise chickens, ducks, or pigs there? Why does he need to buy so many from outside?"
Zhou Lizhong also became puzzled. After thinking for a moment, he hesitated and said, "Is it because there are too many people in the palace and they eat too much, so they can't provide enough food?"
"That's impossible," Zhou Wulang said. "I seem to have heard Manbao mention that the emperor has two imperial estates in the capital, and a large piece of land in Yongzhou. He even planned to use the Yongzhou land as a dowry for Princess Mingda."
The uncle and nephew could only go to Bai Shan when they couldn't figure out something.
Bai Shan hadn't thought about this question before, and was taken aback for a moment when he was suddenly asked. Then he said, "It seems that the supply is insufficient. There don't seem to be many people raising these in the imperial farm."
He paused and said, "There are tenant farmers working in the imperial farm, but the majority are the families of convicted officials, as well as prisoners who have been sentenced to slavery for other reasons. They have to rely on the steward to tell them what to plant and raise."
"But it's not difficult for you to become a purchasing agent for the palace," Bai Shan said. "In fact, some of the medicinal herbs purchased by the Imperial Medical Bureau from outside have always been supplied by Zhou Si. With Zhou Si's connections and the opportunity to supply the imperial farm this time, you can try to get in touch with the purchasing agents at the palace."
Bai Shan smiled and said, "You don't have to take too much at once. Just offer one or two things first, such as chicken and duck eggs. These can be kept for a long time. Just be careful when transporting them. Once you are familiar with the rules of doing business with the palace and know everyone, it will be much easier to take on purchasing business."
Zhou Wulang understood his implication and asked, "Do you think it's a bad idea to accept the palace's purchase orders?"
Bai Shan slowly shook his head and said, "It's not that it's bad, but when you take on business from the palace, you have to be extra careful and cautious."
"But every disadvantage has its advantages. You may not make much money purchasing for the palace, but with this title, any business you do outside will go much more smoothly. Even if you do other things, others will be more polite when you mention them." Bai Shan said, "Merchants supplying the palace rarely make any money, except for things like cloth, tea, and salt. They all make money from outside sources."
Zhou Lizhong pondered, "Just like our family. Knowing that the yam slices and Ligustrum lucidum fruits we grow are supplied to the Imperial Medical Bureau, many drugstores outside have placed orders with us. In the past, we always had to go to several drugstores to sell the herbs we brought from home at a suitable price. But now, as soon as we bring them to the capital, people are scrambling to buy them. They don't mind if they are a few cents more expensive than others."
Bai Shan nodded, "That's the truth."
He said, "If the eggs from the farm were supplied to the imperial palace, you would be able to earn a penny more than others when you sell them outside."
Zhou Wulang said, "So, it's normal for them to buy an egg for five or six coins?"
Bai Shan: "...No, the reason your eggs are worth that much more is because you supply the palace, so they appear to be more precious than other eggs. But apart from a few individual families, who would pay a high price just because the eggs come from the same clutch that supplies the palace?"
He said, "I want you to go to the street and buy good eggs. Would you rather buy the eggs that cost two cents each, or spend three cents on the eggs that are said to be eaten by the emperor?"
Zhou Wulang and his nephew said in unison, "Of course I bought it for two cents."
Zhou Wulang finally understood. "That's why I can't raise the price in the palace, and I might not be able to raise the price outside. But some people want to eat eggs that the emperor has eaten, so they will pay a higher price. Even if there are no such people, I can still sell the same two cents by shouting that these are eggs that the emperor has eaten. They will definitely sell better than other eggs."
Bai Shan smiled and nodded, "This is the benefit of being an imperial merchant."
Zhou Wulang felt proud and thought that this business was a good idea. He would send some of the rice, flour, chicken, duck, fish and meat produced in the farm to the palace. He didn't care whether the emperor ate them or not. He had already sent them to the palace. He could just shout during the New Year. Was he still worried that he wouldn't be able to sell them?
There were a lot of things in the farm, so although a lot of them could be sold, there were also a lot that could not be sold, and in the end they took them back to eat.
But they had a large family and a restaurant, so they weren't worried. But Manbao had been promoted again, and the official land she'd been awarded last year for treating smallpox in Xiazhou had to be planted this year. And after this autumn, the official land she'd received from being promoted to fourth-rank editor would also have to be allocated...
Zhou Wulang calculated and turned to Zhou Lizhong, saying, "If the palace is willing to take our things, you can plant whatever land you are granted in the future. You can raise as many chickens and ducks as you want. If you can't sell them in the capital, you can take them to Yongzhou or other places. As long as you say they are chickens and ducks that the emperor has eaten, our price will be the same as other places, and they will definitely be willing to buy them."
Bai Shan: ...In the future, there will be too many things that the emperor has eaten, and I'm afraid they will be everywhere.
Zhou Wulang, his uncle and nephew, are ready to do something big.
So the next day, after fresh vegetables and eggs were delivered from Yongzhou, he personally delivered them to Huangzhuang and had a very pleasant chat with the new manager there.
A few days later, Zhou Wulang took over two more purchases from the steward, but the ones from their farm were not good enough, so he went to the market to buy them himself. Because of the large quantity, he lowered the price a bit and then sold them to the imperial farm at the market price.
He basically only earned enough money for travel expenses from this part, but he did establish contact with the purchasing department of the palace through the steward.
Zhou Wulang was very happy. Knowing that there was beef for sale in the market, he spent money to buy two large pieces of beef. He sent one to the Bai family and kept the other for his own celebration in the evening.
When Old Lady Liu saw the beef, she smiled and said, "Let's make some sauerkraut. It's still cold now, so the sauerkraut can be kept for a few days. It would be nice to have some sauerkraut noodles every morning. Haven't Shanbao and Erlang been clamoring for some?"
When Aunt Rong heard this, she immediately took the beef and went to see Xiao Qianshi. The Zhou family had pickled bamboo shoots, and Xiao Qianshi's stew was indeed the best.
Little Qian was hesitating, but when she saw her coming over with the meat and saying she wanted to make 臊子 (臊子), she smiled and said, "I'm having a headache. I want to make beef slices, but I also want to make some 臊子 for the young master and Manbao. This one isn't enough."
Yirong also smiled and said, "Our old lady said that the young masters have been complaining about this recently. It's cold in spring, and they want to eat something hot when they get up in the morning to study. I made some臊子 and set it aside. I can make a bowl of noodles for them every morning. I can also send some to Miss Man so that she can eat better in here."
See you at 6pm
(End of this chapter)
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